Dutch flavor for Jakarta's art lovers
By Pavan Kapoor
JAKARTA (JP): There is a certain undeniable wave sweeping through the contemporary art world, especially that of Europe. Surreal impressionism and symbolic art has seen a number of artists subdue their pessimistic urges to produce art that reflects beauty, memory, chosen moments and the special nuances of life.
One such artist is Karin Bos who is displaying her work in an exhibition entitled Art and Fascination at Erasmus Huis, Jl. Rasuna Said, South Jakarta. The exhibition was opened by art critic and curator Jim Supangkat and will be on from Sept. 7 through Sept. 30.
Karin Bos, a young Dutch painter, studied at the Art Academy in Amsterdam. Expositions of her work have been held in the Netherlands, Eindhoven, Leiden and Belgium, among other places. She has also participated in group shows in Brussels, London, San Francisco and Chicago.
This is Karin's first visit to Indonesia but before coming to Jakarta she had exhibited in Cemeti Art House in Yogyakarta.
Karin's work contains an irony laced with a touch of humor. But the theoretical depth of her interpretations reveals itself in the criticism of certain social norms and art classifications.
Karin stated at the opening of the exhibition that "Art should not be confined, classified or labeled. I never use the same technique and constantly use different styles. That is why art is always intriguing."
Double meaning
Perhaps that is why Karin refers to herself as a "chameleon artist." There is a bold use of a variety of mediums - ink, print, oil paint, waterbased color and pencil. There is a range of canvass sizes to create an intriguing contrast. From 96 small artworks in the series Ninety-six ways of lying/ninety-six ways of telling the truth to gigantic oils such as The Carpet Pisser Tilburg, Karin reveals her love of contrast, contradiction and double-meaning.
Examples of her work which ask the observer to dwell on the issue of contradiction are Ninety-six ways of lying/telling the truth and Appearance/disappearance.
"The figures in my works are mainly lost knights and wandering heroes. They are symbols of searching but contradictorily the clues confuse them even more. Just when they think they have solved a problem, the answer fades away and becomes a new question," explains Karin.
The 96 series was done in 1997. It deals with the romantic nature of the way people perceive the painter and is the result of an exercise to see how many interesting variations can be created with one single image.
Humor and satire are also integral parts of Karin's work. Using eroticism in a funny way allows her to be critical without being too moralistic. Today's themes are camouflaged by presenting them as history or fairy tales, as can be seen in So Long, where Shakespearean figures are painted in harmony with a dollar note.
Personal fantasy
Says Karin, "That's how I tickle the personal fantasy of the viewer without dictating what they see."
Karin's inspiration comes from her collections of pictures and stories from various stages of her life. She likes to make notes and sketches of everything she likes and appreciates from newspapers, photos, travels, weird stories and personal experiences. Invariably a carefully stashed note will later appear as the missing link she was looking for to connect an idea and transform it into a new piece of art.
The knights on the oval shaped mirrors in Wish Me Luck refer to the struggle of everyday life and the mirror reflects the spectator who might identify him/herself with the theme.
Searching for Atlantis is the title of three silk screens, which were painted in 1998 for an art exchange program between artists in Amsterdam and California. It is based on various old maps, which represent the different theories that exist about Atlantis.
There is no one in Karin's family tree who is an artist except for her grandfather who loved to buy art books. The grandfather was not allowed to attend art school due to the existing social stigmas and taboos of his day and so satisfied himself by buying and viewing art books. Interesting Pleasing Portraits is an ode to him.
The museum of anatomy in the Dutch city of Leiden inspired Karin to paint Shall we become Divine or shall we just marry. The Siamese twins pictured reminded Karin of twin gods.
Karin's exhibition is one that boldly shines a light on the thinking processes of artists and offers a special insight into the contemporary art world of Europe today.